Less than one full season into his contract, Aston Villa has parted company with Gerard Houllier who was hospitalised before the end of last season. That said, I felt Houllier was about to get the sack anyway and expected Rafa Benitez, who has been loitering around since returning to his family home in England in January, to become the next Aston Villa manager.

But Fulham boss Mark Hughes is the bookies favourite for the job. This follows rumours that Hughes has recently fallen out with Fulham owner Mohammed Al- Fayed and that he has a get-out clause in his contract. But yesterday I heard that ex-Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti has stated that he would like to stay in England rather than return to Italy. I am sure both parties would be interested in Ancelotti becoming the next manager of Aston Villa.

The other manager-less Premier League team, Chelsea look like they are closing in on their first choice to replace Ancelotti at Stamford Bridge, as Guus Hiddink has apparently stated he is ready to leave his current position coaching the Turkey national team, to return to club management. If there is any truth in this statement then I would expect Hiddink to be the next Chelsea manager by next week.

Guus Hiddink to Chelsea & Carlo Ancelotti to Aston Villa is my bet.

The appointments of a Chelsea and Aston Villa manager will be followed by what I believe will be a busy summer for transfers in the English Premier League. Chelsea desperately need to buy some younger players and begin to build a team around striker Fernando Torres. While Manchester City will be throwing a lot of money around again, only in this transfer window they will be able to attract the very best players in the world with Champions League football next season.

Lampard almost plays a free role when Chelsea play 4-3-3, making late runs into the penalty box as well as dropping back to start attacks with sweeping passes, sometimes from his own half,  whereas the diamond formation effectively pushes him further forward in a more confined role supporting the two strikers.

When Chelsea bought Nicolas Anelka in the 2008 January Transfer Window from Bolton I was sure it was a replacement for Didier Drogba who had hinted at a move to Italy.  And though Anelka and Drogba have successfully played together over the past few seasons, I still hold the belief they do not compliment each other’s play.  Anelka plays second fiddle whenever Drogba plays the central striker; and though their interplay can be very effective, Chelsea would only play either if they had another world class forward to choose from.

The arrival of Fernando Torres from Liverpool for £50 million, a British record transfer fee, is going to force Chelsea to reconsider playing 4-4-2 as playing Fernando Torres out of position would not strengthen Chelsea; and leaving Didier Drogba out of the team would be a loss.  If Chelsea can switch to a 4-4-2 and Drogba & Torres can become as much an effective partnership as Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink and Eidur Gudjohnsson when they scored 50 goals in one season, then Chelsea could still be on for the treble this season.

Carlo Ancelotti wanted Torres last summer and apparently the deal could have been made if it wasn’t for Roman Abramovich’s reluctance to spend more of his money on buying world class footballers than booking pop stars for his New Years Eve Party!  But with his signing on the last day of the January Transfer Window, Fernando Torres is now set to make his Chelsea debut at Stamford Bridge against Liverpool; and you can get 22/1 for Fernando Torres to score the first goal and Chelsea to win 2-0.

Abramovich still appears to want the Champions League over a domestic trophy which is apparently why he over ruled the board of directors in appointing  Carlo Ancellotti over Mark Hughes.  Ancelotti has won the Champions League four times, twice as a player and twice as manager, with AC Milan.  And with Torres being legible to play in the forthcoming Champions League games, there was probably no other striker of his quality available, which underlines why Roman Abramovich was willing to hang over a barrel from his short and curlies to meet Liverpool’s £50 million price tag.

Oh, and if we are looking to spice up the game on Sunday as much as possible, let’s not forget it was Liverpool that humiliated Ancelotti’s AC Milan in that amazing Champions League final in Istanbul when they came back from 3-0 down and half-time to win 4-3.

Other betting has Chelsea third favourite to win the Premier League at 13/2 behind Manchester United (8/13) and Arsenal (11/4); or 150/1 to win the FA Cup, Premier League and Champions League.  If Chelsea beat Liverpool on Sunday with signs that Torres and Drogba are as powerful a partnership on the field as they are on paper then expect those prices to begin to fall.

As Man City continue to push for a Champions League position, if not the Premier League, it is essential they add one or two top quality strikers to their squad to relieve the pressured shoulders of sulky home-sick Carlos Tevez considering the ineffectiveness of Emmanuel Adebayor and Joe; and the surprising statement from Roberto Mancini that Paraguay international, Roque Santa Cruz is surplus to requirements.

I’m surprised Mancini is letting Roque Santa Cruz go as I have always considered him to be a good striker, and he showed he can play in the Premier League when he was at Blackburn Rovers.  It is no surprise that several clubs have apparently shown interest in signing Roque Santa Cruz including Fulham who are currently managed by his former boss, Mark Hughes.  West Ham and Aston Villa are also allegedly interested in his services.

So, on to Blackburn Rovers whose owners decided to sack Sam Allardyce in December.  At the time I felt this was to announce a new manager in time for the January transfer window and we were going to see a well-known manager be given a large sum of money to stamp his authority on the team and also announce the Indian Venky Group ownership to the world.  Well, this week they have been linked to one of the biggest names in world football, Ronaldinho.  A well seasoned player that would certainly make a statement of intent for the new Blackburn owners though I’m not sure what else they would receive from a footballer that is currently overweight, overpaid and well past his sell by date!

Furthermore, the owners have stated that caretaker manager Steve Kean will remain in charge at least until the summer.  But it’s clear that any big name signings with overinflated wages and egos are going to create even more problems for a little known manager.

Other transfer speculation includes Tottenham’s ‘serious’ attempts to agree a two-month loan deal with LA Galaxy for David Beckham similarly to his previous loan spells with AC Milan.  Beckham would be a great impact sub.  But Spurs are also keen to strengthen their squad and are showing interest in Uruguay striker Luis Suarez who is currently playing his football for Ajax.

Chelsea have shown interest in signing Gary Cahill from Bolton.  They are desperately in need of top quality players that could hit the ground running but it’s not clear if Roman Abramovich is prepared to put his hand deep enough into his pockets to afford the quality players Chelsea need for a very quick fix.

As for Liverpool, I think they will sack Roy Hodgson.  It is a matter of when, not if.  So depending on how much influence he actually has over new signings will determine whether Liverpool by sell/buy players this month or hold off until the end of the season.  Either way, they need a good clearout before adding to a poor squad.

I don’t believe there will be too many big transfers this month but expect a few players surplus to requirements to be looking for new horizons.  I expect Robbie Keane, David Bentley and Jonathan Woodgate and possibly the eternally “unhappy” Emmanuel Adebayor to be on the move.

Like Chelsea before them, Man City’s arrival has been cemented by a large sum of money while Harry Redknapp performs nothing much short of a miracle in Spurs continual ascendancy as one of the actual ‘big five’ teams in the Premier League.

But this season’s English Premier League has already thrown up a list of amazing results.  Just this weekend Chelsea lost a second game in succession to Birmingham, while Arsenal through away a 2-0 half-time lead to lose to Tottenham 3-2 at The Emirates; and furthermore, while Manchester United remain unbeaten this season they are playing far from their invisible best and only last week were allowed back into a game that Aston Villa should have killed off.

So, with Arsenal and Chelsea dropping points and Man Utd looking less than convincing, there is no better time for Tottenham and Manchester City to launch a real assault on winning the Premier League; and Man City done just that today by thrashing Fulham at Craven Cottage 4-1 and in the process playing a more expansive and attacking style of football under Roberto Mancini than I’ve seen all season.  Maybe the show was especially for former Man City manager Mark Hughes.  But after weeks of criticism of Mancini playing two holding midfielders and one striker both home and away, Manchester City started the game with Carlos Tevez and Joe upfront, and that appeared to signal a change from the more cautious, defensive approach Mancini has played in recent games.

Whatever happens, it is turning into an eventful, exciting season with every week.  I only hope Manchester City and Spurs continue to pile on the pressure by playing exciting football and that come spring, any one from five teams are still in with a chance to win this season’s Premiership title.

The second part should be easier to predict as Rafa has already been linked with a move to Inter Milan as replacement for Jose Mourinho, and while I imagine that is the most likely destination I also wonder how much Benitez will rue missing out on a return to Spain with Real Madrid, now that he is a free agent.

As for his replacement, Kenny Dalglish does not appear to be in the frame at all, but favourites in the press are Martin O’Neil, Roy Hodgson and Guus Hiddink, despite the latter signing a contract to coach the Turkish national side.

Former Manchester City boss Mark Hughes has been mentioned as a candidate in the past and would, I expect relish the opportunity of joining Liverpool, if only to settle old scores with rivals City.

In his favour there would be no compensation to pay out for his services, he is honest and hard working and expects the same from his players. He has also handled business in the transfer market pretty well prior to joining City, where the wheeling and dealing was taken on by the board.

He will feel he has something to prove after the way he was treated by City and his incredible record with Blackburn Rovers on a tight budget proved that he can get the best out of his players as a team.

And right now team spirit at Liverpool appears to be at an all time low, ensuring that the time was right to dispense with Benitez and inject some new blood into the managers hot seat.

I am sure Liverpool could do a lot worse than offering the vacancy to Mark Hughes, but let us know who you would like to see take over at the club.

Harry Redknapp said that the achievement is a massive step forward for Spurs, who could yet usurp North London rivals Arsenal for third place in the league.

It was a deserved win for Spurs who arrived at Eastlands with only a win in mind, with two strikers and the likes of Aaron Lennon in their starting line up.

Given the strike power on show fans would be forgiven if they expected something more akin to the 6-6 draw that was going on simultaneously in the Scottish Premier League between Hibernian and Motherwell.

But in the end it was a simple headed goal from Peter Crouch that seperated the two Premier League teams, coming in the 82nd minute of a an enthralling match.

A proud Harry Redknapp said, “We came here to a hot atmosphere and got at them and we deserved the win. Crouchy was top class and led the line and he deserved the goal. I also think Jermain Defoe had his best performance away from home for some time.”

A pat on the back from Spurs chairman Daniel Levy followed for Redknapp for what he called an amazing achievement, adding; “Harry’s done a great job and we’re very proud of him and the whole team.”

Things were surely much different in the Manchester City boardroom where the least that was expected at the start of the season was to claim fourth place.

I am sure there would have been a wry smile on the face of former manager Mark Hughes on hearing the result following the manner of his dismissal earlier in the season.

Given his credentials Hughes’ replacement Roberto Mancini is obviously a decent football manager, but whether it is down to his command of the English language or not, he has never come across as being the most confident of Premier League coaches.

His substitution of, perhaps City’s only hope of a goal, in Craig Bellamy for a rusty Roque Santa Cruz last night was nothing less than bewildering and he does not convey the passion that Hughes has shown an abundance of in the past.

Maybe if Mancini stays he will improve things at City, possibly get rid of some of the players he has inherited for others that he would choose himself, but last nights defeat will make recruitment of new players a little more difficult than if City had qualified for the Champions League.

It has to be remembered that Manchester City are still relative newcomers to having massive financial backing, and while Spurs may not have such an enormous luxury they have been among the most prolific clubs in the transfer market for three or four seasons now.

There is a massive squad at Redknapp’s disposal and it is worth bearing in mind that Robbie Keane, Jamie O’Hara and Alan Hutton are all still Spurs players who are currently out on loan.

Overall it is great to see the ‘top four’ dominance broken down and maybe a top six emerging making for an even more competitive and entertaining season to come in August.

Manchester City won the game 4-3 against Sunderland in another exciting goalfest.  But on the final whistle Mark Hughes appeared subdued, and after congratulating each of his players he applauded the crowd and gave them telling goodbye wave.

Surprisingly, Mark Hughes claimed on Sunday that he had not been told until after the match that was to get the sack and be replaced with immediate effect by Roberto Mancini, who had been in the crowd at Eastlands.

Mark Hughes went on to say it was agreed at a pre-season meeting with the Manchester City owner, Abu Dhabi’s Sheikh Mansour, that  a top six finish or 70 points was a realistic target for the 2009/10 season. After Saturday’s win Manchester City was in sixth place and on target to reach 70 points this season.

Furthermore, they had only lost two games all season. One to a last minute injury time winner against the current Premier League champions Manchester United (4-3) and last week to an inform Tottenham Hotspur (3-0), the best record in the Premier League Chelsea have already lost three games, Manchester United have lost five games, Arsenal have lost three games and Liverpool a whopping seven games – none of which have sacked their manager, yet!

They are also in semi-final of the League Cup.  Manchester City’s first semi-final for 28 years!

The fact that Manchester City, not necessarily Mark Hughes, have spent £200 million of Sheikh Mansour’s money is apparently enough to sack a perfectly good young manager who I believe this season would have finished with a trophy and a very real possibility of guaranteed Champions League football next season, which in turn would have opened the door for some of the biggest names in world football to choose the blue half of Manchester over the red devils.

Too many draws and not enough wins was of course Mark Hughes’ problem. This I believe was caused by too many top quality attacking options and not a strong enough defence.

Panic buying led to inflated transfer fees for Jolean Lescott and Kolo Toure when the lure of money failed to capture John Terry’s signature in the summer.  And to rub salt into wounds, former captain Richard Dunne, who was hounded out of the club by someone, is having a great season for Aston Villa.

Whether Mancini will continue to look for proven players in the Premier League or use his Italian connections to bolster a very weak defence we will see in the coming January transfer window.

Certain players definitely appear to have been bought on the request of Mark Hughes.  Rocky Santa Cruz followed him from Blackburn Rovers and Craig Bellamy who had always been admired by Hughes since his days as manager of Wales I would be confident in saying had Mark Hughes stamp of approval.  But remember how both Hughes and Robinho looked dumbstruck the night  he was signed from Real Madrid?

Fitting then that in what appeared to be a final stand, Mark Hughes left Robinho and Emmanuel Adebeyor on the subs bench on Saturday and Rocky Santa Cruz and Craig Bellamy both had a great game and scored three of Manchester City’s four goals.

Roberto Mancini has managed Fiorentina and Inter Milan, where he won three successive Italian League titles and two Italian Cups, before being dismissed in May 2008 and replaced by Jose Mourinho.

Mancini definitely has the right pedigree to take Manchester City to the next level, and with the astute appointment of Brian Kidd as first team coach maybe Manchester City are looking to emulate the successful Anglo-Italian  partnership of Jose Mourinho and Steve Clarke at Chelsea. But with several players – Rocky Santa Cruz, Craig Bellamy, Shay Given, Gareth Barry, Kolo Toure, Nigel De Jong, Shaun Wright-Phillips and Stephen Ireland – already stating how unhappy they are with the sacking of Mark Hughes, Mancini faces a baptism of fire as he prepares to take over the reigns for three games in quick succession, starting with an awkward game against Stoke City on Boxing Day.

At the beginning of the season I wanted Manchester City to break into the top four but now there’s a part of me that wants them to finish mid-table and get thrashed by Manchester United in the forthcoming League Cup semi-final!

Both Wenger and Hughes were involved in a verbal confrontation throughout most of the game, bending the ear of the fourth official, with the Arsenal boss at one time moaning that Hughes had left his technical area.

Wenger was particularly animated, often literally dancing in anger on the touchline at every refereeing decision that went against his team, as Manchester City finally took control of the game in the second half.

The much lauded young Gunners were, in the end, no match against the experience of Manchester City and despite the obvious qualities of the Arsenal squad, how long can they continue without a trophy to show for their efforts.

It has become the norm for the bigger teams to field their less experienced players in the Carling Cup competition and Chelsea followed the example of the Gunners by changing eight players from the team that had beaten Arsenal on Sunday for their game at Blackburn Rovers.

Inevitably they too paid the price of inexperience, losing out on penalties to Rovers, with Paul Robinson the goalkeeping hero with a brilliant save save from Ballack’s penalty and also denying the youngster Kakuta.

The game should never have reached that stage as Blackburn really deserved to win in normal time, only to see Ferreira equalise in the final moments of extra time. At 3-3, Blackburn kept their cool to run out 4-3 winners on penalties.

Carlo Ancelotti said after the game that he was disappointed with the result after a triple half time substitution gamble put Chelsea back into the game. The loss of Kalou with 20 minutes of normal time remaining meant that Chelsea had to play the remainder of the game with only ten men. But he did have the grace to shake the hand of Blackburn’s victorious caretaker manager Neil McDonald after the defeat.

Manchester City will face local rivals United in the semi final, a classic in the making surely, while Blackburn Rovers will play Aston Villa in the other two legged game.

Today, City have picked up the experienced Brazilian defender Sylvinho on a free transfer after the player was released by Barcelona at the end of last season. The veteran 35 year old has a wealth of experience at the top level and is signed as cover for injury prone England defender Wayne Bridge in particular.

Sylvinho is a double Champions League winner, his last experience in this years final against Manchester United where he played the full 90 minutes, he has also collected three La Liga medals during his stay at the Nou Camp.

Mark Hughes said on the Manchester City website:

“Sylvinho has a wealth of experience at the very top level, having represented Brazil and played for some of the very top clubs in Europe. When the chance presented itself to bring him to Manchester City as a free agent I saw it as representing excellent business for us. Sylvinho won the European Cup last season at Barcelona and he will strengthen our defensive options.”

Everton

Lescott has been hotly pursued by Manchester City throughout the last month or so, even while negotiating with Chelsea for captain John Terry, but Everton have so far resisted any offers for Lescott and have hit out at Mark Hughes for being ‘un-proffessional’ in his pursuit of the player.

But things could be about to change as David Moyes has today said that while he has no intention of letting the defender go, every player has his price.

Moyes said: “Joleon’s attitude has not been right these past days, he has disappointed me and he has disappointed his team-mates. He is not in the right frame of mind. People can read what they like into this. But I have said all along I don’t want to sell him. But it is a bit like Cristiano Ronaldo leaving Manchester United, there is always a price. At this moment no club has made us an offer for the player that we want to accept.”